My Favorite Mistake: Business Lessons from Failures and Success - Workplace Therapist Brandon Smith Stayed in a Comfortable Teaching Job Too Long

Workplace Therapist Brandon Smith Stayed in a Comfortable Teaching Job Too Long

01/13/22 • 40 min

My Favorite Mistake: Business Lessons from Failures and Success

Video and more: https://www.markgraban.com/mistake131

My guest for Episode #131 of the My Favorite Mistake podcast is Brandon Smith, an executive coach, author, speaker, and podcaster. His podcast (and his label for himself) is “The Workplace Therapist” and he's had me as a guest there. As a “therapist,” he has an MS in Clinical Counseling.

Some of his jobs and roles include:

The Worksmiths, Founder and CEO
The Leadership Foundry, Co-Founder
Goizueta Business School, Emory University, Adjunct Faculty

He’s the author of books including his latest, The Hot Sauce Principle: How to Live and Lead in a World Where Everything Is Urgent All of the Time.

In today's episode, Brandon shares his “favorite mistake” story about staying in a “comfortable” executive education teaching job too long — why was that a “bad relationship” and what did he learn from the experience?

We talk about that story and other topics including:

What triggered this realization?
Was it a pattern?
Why did you come to call yourself “the workplace therapist”?
What reasons do people come to you for workplace therapy?
Choosing to come vs. being told they have to?
Resisting expertise?
Tell us about the book... what is the “hot sauce principle”??
Why do we need “focused energy”?
Using “hot sauce” or urgency appropriately

Find Brandon on Social Media:

--- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/favorite-mistake/support

Video and more: https://www.markgraban.com/mistake131

Some of his jobs and roles include:

The Worksmiths, Founder and CEO
The Leadership Foundry, Co-Founder
Goizueta Business School, Emory University, Adjunct Faculty

He’s the author of books including his latest, The Hot Sauce Principle: How to Live and Lead in a World Where Everything Is Urgent All of the Time.

We talk about that story and other topics including:

What triggered this realization?
Was it a pattern?
Why did you come to call yourself “the workplace therapist”?
What reasons do people come to you for workplace therapy?
Choosing to come vs. being told they have to?
Resisting expertise?
Tell us about the book... what is the “hot sauce principle”??
Why do we need “focused energy”?
Using “hot sauce” or urgency appropriately

Find Brandon on Social Media:

--- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/favorite-mistake/support

Previous Episode

Vicki Moore Gave Away Her Business and Found Moving to Europe Was Harder Than Expected

Show notes, video, and more: https://markgraban.com/mistake130

My guest for Episode #130 of the My Favorite Mistake podcast is Vicki Moore, joining us from Frankfurt, Germany.

Vicki is an entrepreneur, author, and coach, whose passion is finding ways to help people achieve big goals. She spent most of her career in corporate training and development, working with Fortune 500 clients. She founded a successful training agency in Los Angeles, which she ran for more than 10 years, before pursuing her dream of moving to Europe in 2015. She now lives in Germany and helps both teams and individuals confidently create their own path to success.

She’s the author of the Book: Life Beyond Should: Overcome Expectations & Create the Life You Want. Enter to win a signed copy by using the entry form further down on this page.

Enter to win a signed copy (click here).

In today's episode, Vicki tells her “favorite mistake” story about getting divorced and giving away the business she had spent ten years building. How did this mistake lead to a better situation that she “couldn't have done otherwise”? Why was moving to Europe more difficult than Vicki expected and what did she learn from that?

We talk about that story and other topics including:

Moving to Europe, hadn’t factored in culture, biz culture, network, language... — a mistake to assume that
Tell us about the coaching work that you do... who do you work with? And where?
Do you help coach people through mistakes?
Overcoming expectations of what others think our life should look like
Best thing / worst thing about moving there?
Expectations – can be good or unfair expectations?

Find Vicki on Social Media:

--- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/favorite-mistake/support

Next Episode

Certified Financial Planner Manisha Thakor Saved Too Much for Retirement

Episode page: https://www.markgraban.com/mistake132

My guest for Episode #132 of the My Favorite Mistake podcast is Manisha Thakor, a 25-year veteran of the financial services industry. She has seen firsthand the downfalls of being trapped in what she calls “the cult of money.” She is a Chartered Financial Analyst and a Certified Financial Planner.

From a failed marriage to nearly working herself to death – twice, Manisha has learned the hard way how expensive this pursuit of money really is. Using a unique approach she calls “MoneyZen”, Manisha found her way back to financial and personal wellbeing. Today, she uses this framework to help others do the same.

Manisha is the author of books including On My Own Two Feet and Get Financially Naked: How to Talk Money With Your Honey.

In today's episode, Manisha shares her “favorite mistake” story about realizing she had saved up far more than she needed for retirement — at the cost of her own well-being, health, and satisfaction. Why did she confuse wealth for “well-th”?

We talk about that story and other topics including:

Retired once she realized she had WAY too much saved
From donations to direct participation in meaningful non-profits?
Tell us what you mean by the phrase “a cult of money” and why people get caught up in that?
Well-th isn’t as easily measured?
Ten Percent Happier podcast
What led to you “nearly working yourself to death”?
The cult of “never enough”
The most common money mistakes that couples make?
What is “MoneyZen”?
How do you work with individuals? With organizations (wellness centers, corporations)
The quiz on her website that she mentioned

Find Manisha on Social Media:

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--- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/favorite-mistake/support